Winning Workplaces: Building a fun work culture

This article first appeared on the Winning Workplaces  website. Winning Workplaces is an information, networking and consulting organization focused on creating positive, productive work environments. http://www.winningworkplaces.com/

Jodi Wasserman juggles dual roles at Interface Software, and she has the business cards to prove it. One set of cards lists the title of Marketing Events Manager, the other: “Ambassador of Fun.” Despite the somewhat offbeat designation, the latter role is of tremendous importance to the Oak Brook, Ill.-based customer relationship management software company. In fact, her Ambassador of Fun duties take up as much as 75 percent of her time in any given week. Wasserman's job is to oversee the company's recognition and teambuilding initiatives or, as she puts it, to “create the company’s culture.”

Software development can be an incredibly demanding profession. It is a deadline-oriented job that often requires long hours. This is one very practical reason why Interface Software places such a premium on creating a fun work environment. Wasserman administers a wide and ever-changing array of initiatives to help ensure that employees enjoy the time they spend in the office. For example, the company recently held a unique event called “Trading Workspaces.” Modeled after the popular television program “Trading Spaces,” it entailed co-workers redecorating each other’s cubicles. In addition, the company holds 5K charity runs, bake sales, Chicago Cubs game outings, and an annual Halloween party that has proven extremely popular with the staff and their families. Interface Software also celebrates important personal milestones such as birthdays and anniversaries. CEO Nate Fineberg takes new hires to lunch after they have been with the company for 90 days. They even have logo t-shirts for employees’ newborns.

Interface Software has two ongoing recognition initiatives: the STAR (Special Thanks and Recognition) Card program and the CORE (Co-Workers Recognition of Excellence) Awards. STAR Cards are certificates redeemable in the company store. The store is open before each of their bi-weekly Monday morning meetings and contains premiums such as Interface Software t-shirts, mugs, pens and hats. Employees give each other these cards as thanks for going above and beyond the call of duty in their day-to-day work. The popularity of this program can be seen by just taking a quick walk around the office. According to Wasserman, one can find as many as 50 percent of the staff wearing items bearing the Interface Software logo on any given day.

The CORE Awards honor employees for major accomplishments. Workers nominate their peers via an intranet form for the prize and the nominees are evaluated by an employee-run committee. Winners are recognized at the aforementioned Monday morning meetings with an engraved glass trophy shaped like a cube. A ribbon is also placed on the name plate of the honoree’s cubicle. At the end of each quarter, the winners are entered into a drawing for a big-ticket prize.

Both the STAR Card program and the CORE Awards are employee-run initiatives. According to Wasserman, the company does not believe in management-driven recognition programs. “That’s what raises and bonuses are for,” she says. Wasserman explains that management-driven recognition can be counterproductive because it fosters competition and can divide the workplace, whereas peer-to-peer recognition encourages a spirit of camaraderie and teamwork. Software Developer Gary Brown has found that to be the case. Periodically, the company store has a STAR Card sale during which all merchandise is available at a discount. Brown says that on these occasions his co-workers go out of their way to remember how they helped each other and show their appreciation by rewarding each other with STAR Cards.

While these programs make for an enjoyable work experience, software development can still make considerable demands on employees’ time. Interface Software understands this and provides a number of onsite services to help mitigate conflicts between its people’s work and personal lives. They order in dinner for employees who work late, have an onsite dry cleaning service and allow many of their employees to telecommute. In addition, the company provides a monthly massage service to help alleviate stress.

Fineberg points out that none of the company’s programs are possible without open communication. Interface Software has an open-door policy, holds regular all-staff meetings and conducts an employee survey twice a year. The company uses the feedback they gather to continually improve their programs and the overall work environment. The employee survey includes a list of statements and asks employees to rate the degree to which they agree or disagree with them. One of those statements is: “Interface Software is the best company I have ever worked for.” According to Fineberg, the overwhelming majority of the staff strongly agrees with the statement. He says his ultimate goal is to have everyone strongly agree that Interface Software is the best place they have ever worked.

While Interface Software makes a considerable investment in its employees, it is also extremely selective in who it hires and keeps on, both in terms of skill set and personality. In fact, the company has an official “No Jerk Policy,” which demands that employees are able to work and get along with others. “We only want people who believe in our values,” says Fineberg. “We want friendly people who are honest and have integrity – people who believe in teamwork and are crazy about exceeding customer expectations.”

So far, the company’s policies and programs have paid off. The company has a voluntary turnover rate of 6.5 percent, well below the industry average of close to 10 percent. Almost 12 percent of their 2003 hires were former employees returning to the company. What’s more, the company has continued to grow during tough economic times. They saw 5 percent growth in 2003 and 10 percent in 2002. In fact, Interface was one of the few software companies not to experience a layoff during the recent economic downturn.

Creating a fun, exciting work environment, however, is also very much a personal issue for Fineberg. “I’ve worked for companies that didn’t pay much attention to the people issues and I didn’t like it,” he says. “I wouldn’t work for a company that didn’t have this kind of atmosphere.”

Company: Interface Software
Web site: www.interfacesoftware.com
Industry: Software Development
Location: Oak Brook, Ill.
Number of employees: 111 full-time
Sales: NA